If you’re looking for a great way to spice up your lunch ideas or add a healthy twist to fast dinners, why not try cooking with fresh peppers?

Adding fresh peppers to your meals is a great way to boost your immune system - and they're budget-friendly too!

Packed full of vitamin E and loaded with even more vitamin C than any other fruit or vegetable, even oranges (red and yellow sweet peppers are said to be the richest of all), adding fresh peppers to any meal is a great way to boost your immune system, and nourish your skin from the inside.

They’re also incredibly low in calories, meaning that feasting on a heaped plate of peppers will leave you feeling full and satisfied, without that sluggish slump that often follows a carb-heavy meal.

And if all those health benefits weren’t enough to load up your shopping trolley with sweet peppers, here’s the best bit; they’re super budget-friendly too! So grab a few fresh peppers this week (only 50p a pepper this week at Asda), and try whipping up these delicious dinners, starters and lunch ideas...

1. Chop up your peppers and roast them with fresh tomatoes, onion, chopped garlic and a drizzle of oil. Once roasted, blitz all the softened veggies in a blender with stock and seasoning, to make a delicious roast pepper and tomato soup.

2. Slice your peppers into halves and de-seed, top them with slices of halloumi and grill for 10 to 15 minutes - or until the cheese turns golden. For an extra kick add some chopped chillies, or a little garlic with a drizzle of oil to season.

4. Cut off the tops and de-seed your peppers, bake for around 10 to 15 minutes to soften, and then gently stuff with various fillings - try cous cous or quinoa mixed with chopped tomatoes and fresh herbs for a filling dinner, or tuna and sweetcorn salad with crumbled feta for a healthy lunchtime snack.

5. Boil sweet potatoes to soften, and mash with herbs to season. Slice sweet peppers in half widthways and de-seed to create 'cups', then load with the mash leaving enough room to crack an egg on top. Add a drizzle of olive oil and black pepper, then bake for 10 to 12 minutes for a delicious egg, pepper and sweet potato brunch.

6. Chop, de-seed and roast red peppers until nice and soft, then add to a blender with a can of chickpeas, a little olive oil, lemon juice and crushed garlic. Blitz until you have a creamy paste, and enjoy as a red pepper dip for warm pitta bread or veggie sticks.

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